


Still Our Beginning

by electricheart



Series: imagineyourotp prompt [6]
Category: Terra Formars
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, F/M, Work In Progress
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-08-14
Updated: 2017-09-23
Packaged: 2018-02-13 04:45:48
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,056
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2137467
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/electricheart/pseuds/electricheart
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>AU - U-NASA finds Akari Hizamaru before Michelle K. Davis is dubbed the 'miracle child'</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> terra formars spoilers beware

The first time they take her to U-NASA, they tell her that she's going to meet someone like her but she doesn't believe it. 

Who else can be a monster like her?

 

\---

 

They warn her, the man named Komachi, the man named Thien, and the woman named Nanao, that he, the one she's supposed to meet, is very shy and hasn't had much contact with anyone near his age. They ask that she be patient with him. She doesn't think much of it then.

 

\---

 

The first time they meet, after the adults stop fighting about whether or not it's alright for the two of them to meet, something about ' _not in their best interest_ ' and ' _cause problems on the long run_ ' and some other things that go past her 14 year old head, she really thinks that they're mocking her. That the small boy, the one who still looks like a little kid, in front of her can't possibly be anything like her, not when he's looking at her like she's the scariest thing in the world. 

She wants to shout at him to tell him to stop looking at her like that but before she can even open her mouth- he screams. He screams and it shocks her before it insults her because he sounds terrified out of his mind, but then he's running behind Miss Nanao's legs shouting about being scared that she can't help but shout ' _shut up_!', and he does.

He shuts up, still tucked safely away from her vision by Miss Nanao's body, until he peeks at her from behind her legs and Michelle finally sees what all the adults meant- him being like her. 

His eyes have changed, slightly different that how her's look, but close to enough to resemble her's when she's in _that state_. And she sees it, the antennas (feelers) on his head, different from her's, soft looking where her's are anything but. 

He's like her- he's different but he's _like her_.

\--

"His name is Akari Hizamaru, he's been on U-NASA's care since he was two, and this is the first time he's stepped out of it since," Mister Thien says as she walks along side his wheelchair (she doesn't really understand why he's in it when he was walking just fine the week before- she later finds out that sometimes his legs will give out for weeks from something that happened to him some 10 years ago). 

She glances to the side, where Mister Komachi is rolling in the green grass calling out to the boy who's clinging to Miss Nanao's legs. 

"We hope," Mister Thien starts again, "that you two can become friends, not because of what you can do, but because you're the closest to him in age."

Her lip curls at that. She's turning 15 soon and he's- he's practically a baby (although Miss Nanao tells her he's only around five years younger than her).

She knows what it's like to be alone though, and she doesn't want him to feel that, or understand what it feels like because- well because he's practically a _baby_ (her mom would argue that she's also practically a baby- Michelle's not about that technicalities life however).

\--

"Drop the _u_ at the end," she says yet again, having to look at Miss Nanao's legs once again because he refuses to make eye contact with her (then again every time he does he ends up transforming into _that state_ and she doesn't want to cause that in him).

"Mi-misheru?" his voice is really small even though they all know he can get very loud (she's heard him before but never got to see it since he becomes a mouse the moment he sees her).

"No, no _u_ , just _lle_ \- Michelle."

He doesn't say anything and hugs Miss Nanao's legs tighter.

Michelle sighs. "I thought he already knew english."

"Ah," Miss Nanao starts looking at little sheepish, "he does, don't get us wrong, but we mostly speak to him in japanese so sometimes he has slight problems with his l's, but only his l's!"

"It's alright, I wasn't trying to imply anything," Michelle says quickly, "I don't mind at all, I was just curious is all."

Miss Nanao smiles at her, before turning slightly to the boy behind her and ruffling his hair, saying something to him in japanese that Michelle can't understand. 

The boy- Akari she has to constantly reminds herself- peeks at her from behind Miss Nanao's legs and smiles shyly at her. Michelle smiles back and receives only a squeak in return.

Michelle sighs, this is gonna take a while.

 

\---

 

She continues to visit him whenever she can (she does have school to go to still, not to mention her volunteer hours and her part time job helping out in the local library). He still runs towards Miss Nanao whenever he sees her and completely freaks out when he sees her and Miss Nanao isn't around.

Honestly, it's starting to get a little funny (not his distress though, because it makes her ache in her heart and she's not all that interested in delving deeper into the why) the way he seems to only be able to hold the smallest of conversations from behind Miss Nanao's legs.

Someone visits him once, an old man who Mister Komachi would later call Akari's grandpa, and she watches as Akari doesn't hide behind Miss Nanao's legs and instead runs and shouts in glee as he hugs this person.

She wonders if he'll ever react to her like that.

\---

She watches him swing around a wooden sword with deep concentration, and for a couple of minutes she just watches from the door until she can't stop herself from asking what he's doing. The reaction was as always, with him squeaking in shock and frantically looking around for Miss Nanao.

She quickly threw her hands up, "It's ok, it's ok. I'll just go, you do your thing, Akari," she says taking a step back.

"W-wait!" 

She stops looking at him with wide eyes. His widen as well and he goes so many shades of red Michelle thinks he's gonna pass out. 

"Ke- k-"

"Ke?"

She watches him take a deep breath, still completely red in the face, but he's looking at her now, clutching the wooden sword to his chest. No feelers, no change in skin. Not in _that state_.

"Ke- it's- it's kendo," he says softly, and quickly turns his gaze to the floor.

She looks at him, noting that this is the first time since they met a year ago that he's spoken to her. She smiles.

"Kendo? Can you tell me more about it?" she asks, and when he looks up at her he slowly gives her the biggest smile she's ever seen.


	2. Chapter 2

"You'll come back right?" Akari asks her when she tells him it's time for her to leave for Texas again. His eyes are big and filled with tears he won't let out, looking like a scared puppy.  
  
She flicks his forehead with ease. "'Course I will, you big dummy."  
  
"You promise?" he asks, holding both his hands to his forehead.  
  
"Scout's honor," she says, holding her pinkie up at him.  
  
He smiles and threads his pinkie with her own.  
  
"Michelle, what's a scout?"

  
\---

  
  
"Couldn't you invite him to spend the weekend here with us?" her mother asks as Michelle sets the dinner plates on the table.  
  
"Not unless you're ready to feed and house around 30 people or more. I haven't quite figured out how many people watch over him," she says to herself, and that, frankly makes her super uncomfortable. Even when she can't see them around she knows they're there watching from every corner probably. It's creepy. Why does he need so many guards? Is someone after him??  
  
... Is someone after her too?  
  
She shakes her head. No use thinking about it. Not yet at least.  
  
"Anyway, check this out," she says, pulling out her phone to show her the video she took discreetly of Akari showing her different kendo moves, the image of concentration in a small and adorable 10 year old body.

  
\---

  
Akari she comes to find is awful at school- home school or whatever, however one would call it when his home is a federal and international agency specializing on space and the like. He's ten and even though he's got some of the brightest minds in the country teaching him he's already falling behind the average scores for a boy his age.  
  
Frustratingly enough she finds out that these assholes who call themselves his teachers, the ones who are supposed to support and help him, don't have a problem berating him to his face for it to the point where he looks like he'll cry out of shame.  
  
In fact, she'd gotten so angry she'd transformed before she even realized it, only becoming aware of it when she felt Akari pulling at her back to let go of the man she'd all but lifted off the floor by the collar of their shirt.  
  
She dropped them with a huff, trying to keep herself together, going over her usual breathing exercises her therapist had taught her in order to control her ever growing temper. But there are too many things she's angry about, too may secrets she needs to know the answers to but no one will give her any, too many things happening in her life that she has no say or control over.  
  
She's tired.  
  
So so _tired_.  
  
"C'mon Akari grab your stuff," she tells him, not turning his way, just glaring down at the man below who looks up at her with fright. She doesn't feel shame, or satisfaction, from it.

She feels righteousness. 

  
\---

  
  
"It's pointless," Akari mutters, his bottom lip wobbling, nose red and head bent down, his hair covering his eyes that she's sure are filling up with tears again (If she finds out someone actually said that to him there will be hell to pay).  
  
Michelle for her part is not as surprised as she thought she would be. It's not that he doesn't understand, not really, she's tutored enough kids to tell the difference between someone who truly can't figure out something following the way the text tells them to and someone who while having the right idea somehow manage to lose themselves half way through.  
   
She hasn't quite figured out how Akari is losing himself in the equations, in the grammar rules, in the timelines. He starts out so well! He's memorized so much but applying them? Not quite as good.  
  
It's like he forgets that he knows all the instructions for building Ikea furniture and yet still somehow manages to put something together only for it to fall apart once he pats it down to check for sturdiness.  
  
... Weird metaphor maybe but true (plus she's had to build up her own bed after accidentally breaking it for the third time in the past 7 months after another weird dream that she hasn't told anyone about- but still.)  
  
Michelle for her part falls backwards onto the grass of U-NASA's small inner park. She sighs and inwardly groans when she hears Akari sniff. _Shit_ , she didn't mean to make him cry.  
  
She sits up quickly and slaps her hands over her cheeks, hard. Akari squeaks, head jumping up to look at her in shock and concern.  
  
She shakes her head and pulls a hair tie from her back pocket. Her hair now up in a pony tail she grabs the can of coffee Akari had accidentally picked from the bending machine on their way out and downs it all in one go.  
  
Akari's eyes are bright and wide when she crushes the can in her hands and sets it aside to throw away later.  
  
"Nothing's pointless," she starts, grabbing his notebook to look his calculations over again. "That's quitter talk Akari, we don't do quitter talk, you hear. We don't give up, no matter how hard something seems, we keep going and going until we get what we want."  
  
When she looks at him his eyes are bright from the tears he didn't shed but there's a twinkle in there that makes her smile.  
  
"Don't give up on yourself and I won't ever give up on you, deal?"  
  
Akari nods so quickly she laughs.  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> #it's been so long since I updated  
> #oops

**Author's Note:**

> inspired by - Imagine person A being a product of a science experiment and person B is the first real person that A sees. Person A becomes curious about B and their ways so he/she follows Person B around, asking them questions about everything, even silly things.
> 
> otherwise known as aka my faves LIVE and my otp meets when they're younger AU.


End file.
